How to use 's and s' correctly.Overworked leaders and managers with little time might think that improving their writing is a tedious or even frivolous exercise. But inappropriate use of the apostrophe let’s most people down. This punctuation mark is used to show possession or to replace missing letters. While leaders and managers often struggle with grammar rules involving apostrophes, you can learn a few simple guidelines that will help you use an apostrophe with confidence, and set a good example: [MORE]

Statistic of the week.In the five months from June, more than 24,000 attempts were made to access “inappropriate” websites from the Houses of Parliament – even though Parliament was not sitting for much of that time. That amounts, on average, to 160 a day. Allegedly, most were accidental. The Times

Good week to be a man. Men are enjoying more leisure time than they did 15 years ago – while women have less. According to the Office for National Statistics, men spent 43 hours a week on leisure activities in 2015, up from 42.88 hours in 2000. In the same period, women’s leisure time fell to 38.35 hours, from 39.24. Other surveys suggest that women spending more time caring for adult relatives may be behind the growing disparity. Daily Mail

Consumer spending falls by 0.3%. Household spending declined by 1% on an annual basis in December, rounding off the worst year for consumer spending across the UK since 2012. Annual consumer spending fell by 0.3% during the whole of 2017 from the previous year’s level – the first annual decline in half a decade. The Economist

Where did house prices rise fastest in 2017?House prices rose faster in the East Midlands and Wales than anywhere else in the UK last year, according to the Halifax. The mortgage lender said both areas saw prices rise by 8%. There were also big price gains in the West Midlands, where prices climbled 5%, and the South West, with a spike of 4.9%. In London, prices rose by just 1%, the slowest increase for six years. The Independent

Teachers warn of ‘epidemic of stress’ in profession. Figures obtained by the Lib Dems show 3,750 teachers were signed off on long-term sick leave last year in England – and teachers’ unions say the cause is an “epidemic of stress” in the underfunded profession. One union said teachers “work more unpaid overtime than any other profession” and face a “punitive” accountability system. The Guardian

Good week for Dorset homeowners. The owners of four houses on the Sandbanks peninsula found that their properties had increased in value from £1.8m to £2m overnight after Storm Eleanor blew down a 50ft conifer that had been partially blocking the view of Poole Harbour. “All my dreams have come true,” said one of the owners. Evening Standard

Sugar addiction blamed as childhood tooth extraction soars. Addiction to sugar means nearly 43,000 children underwent hospital surgery to remove multiple teeth last year - 170 a day. "This concerning trend shows there is an urgent need to introduce measures to curb our sugar addiction which is causing children's teeth to rot," said the Local Government Association. Daily Express

Quote of the week. "The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don't wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope." Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States, quoted in The Times.

The bottom line. Britons spent an average of €1,300 on clothes and shoes in 2016 – 5.6% of household budgets, according to Eurostat. By comparison, the French spent just €700 (3.8%). Metro

This Microportal is built on the 2day Microportals platform which provides you with 3 click access to local and global information crucial both to your personal and working life. The platform provides live local data on transport, what's on, accommodation, eating out, shopping, sport, religion and weather as well as comprehensive reference and resource sections including TV, radio, online shopping, route planning, health, education and more.

We are not responsible for the content of external internet sites to which any 2day supported sites are linked. We do not share any contact information with other providers. We use cookies to make our site work efficiently. More information on privacy and cookies.